


AKA the Firehawk

by Tangerine_Catnip



Category: Borderlands (Video Games)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Alternate Universe - Character Swap, Character Study, Gen, Swapped Roles
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-02-16
Updated: 2017-02-16
Packaged: 2018-09-24 23:25:57
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,977
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9791774
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Tangerine_Catnip/pseuds/Tangerine_Catnip
Summary: Jack/Lilith role swap. Jack discovers how Eridium effects his siren powers and accidentally liquefies a dude.





	

**Author's Note:**

> I’ve always thought Lilith and Jack had more in common than most people realise. With a bit of tweaking to the plot of BL2 they could have made wonderful foils to one another. if the ending of TPS is any indication tho, maybe Jack will influence Lilith's character progression post-mortem.
> 
> I was going to write a blog post about it but I decided a story would be more fun.

Being dead sucked. Even if you weren't really, y'know, completely dead. You still had to be underground, just in a metaphorical sense more than literally.

Overall, Jack hated hiding out in a frickin canyon when he could be out saving people and getting worshipped like a badass siren deserved, but he had promised Nisha he would keep the Bloodshot bandits off her back. With him posted here, she could focus her efforts on finding a way to strike back at Hyperion. Even years of isolation would be worth it if it helped them take down Hyperion and Lilith.

Though, he probably would have done it just because Nisha asked. They both knew he could never say no to her, and not just because she would kick his ass from Three Horn to The Dust if he tried.

Lucky for Jack, Frostburn Canyon didn't completely lack for entertainment. He could shoot bandits, terrorise that wired cult that was obsessed with sacrificing people to him, or work on Operation: 'convince Nisha to get back together and/or have sex with me again'.

None of those was very appealing now, though. Jack was restless and was craving something new and exciting.

His computer was to messed up to be useful, it was caught on a blue screen that said something about emailing his internet history to his grandmother. The joke was on it, though, since he didn't give two shits about his grandmother (or the one who was still alive, anyway).

Jack swung his legs off his bed and stretched his arms over his head. His hideout wasn't all that uncomfortable, considering it was basically three platforms suspended over a frozen lake. He had a fire pit in his bedroom, (not that he was all that worried about the cold when he could literally cloak himself in fire at a moment's notice) some beat up sofas, and other furniture stolen from local bandit camps.

But like everything on Pandora, everything he owned was two decades out of date and very well worn. Every scrap of fabric was precious when none of the local wildlife could produce anything but scaly leather.

As a testament to that fact, Jack still wore the clothing that he had on when he stepped off the bus at Fyrestone despite the damage they had sustained over the years. His blue jeans with the yellow stripe had been torn open around his left thigh, exposing the swirly tattoos on that leg.

Similarly, his brown Jacket had the left arm and a huge chunk of the shoulder torn out, leaving only enough material that it didn't slip off entirely. To help keep it on, he had fastened the chain that had once been hanging from his hip over his collar, supporting the damaged side with the intact one.

But the most devastating loss was his yellow sweater, which had been ripped so thoroughly only the bottom hem and shreds of the material hanging off it had survived. Unwilling to part with it, Jack had fasted that into a new hip accessory of sorts, accentuating the asymmetry of his tattoos by having the longer shreds hang off the opposite side.

Nisha had given him a leather vest and a slightly oversized white shirt to save him from going around bare chested. It worked out well since it the vest was much harder to tear and mostly protected the shirt underneath.

After looking around his hideout for a while, Jack decided he really needed to get out and have a walk before he started going stir crazy.

The exit of the canyon was a half hour hike from his lair, but Jack had just the trick to solve that problem. He waved his left hand, sending out a shockwave as he stepped into the space between dimensions. Each step he took in phasewalk counted for five in his home space-time as well as rendering him completely invisible and invincible.

As he passed through space at impossible speeds, Jack kept his eyes open for any opportunity to have a little fun and wipe out some scum while he was at it.

Just was just about to head into the underground passage that leads in and out of the canyon, he spotted exactly what he had been looking for.

A gaggle of bandits was gathered near the edge of a cliff face. They stood in a loose circle around a large metal chest. It was painted a deep crimson and had the slanted H logo of Hyperion on the side. Whether it was coming from or going to Hyperion was unclear, but there had to be something cool inside it, especially since the bandits were bickering over it.

Jack passed right through one of the bandits as he sauntered over to them and got into the perfect position.

He lifted his hand and released phasewalk just in time for his fist to slam into the cheek of the ugliest of the bandits available. A shockwave of dark purple energy released as he transitioned from one dimension to the other, sending the rest of the bandits flying like ragdolls. Three of them went right off the side of the cliff, and Jack turned just in time to see their stupid faces as they flailed in midair.

His mouth split in a wide grin. Now came the best part; turning on the fire. Wings sprouted from Jack's back that were twice his height from tip to tip, large enough you'd believe he could jump into the air and take flight.

Most of the bandits tried to flee, but for one or two, greed eclipsed self-preservation and a frantic scramble for the case ensued.

In the struggle, someone hit the release mechanism, and the top popped open. Glowing purple rocks spilt forth. They were rough around the edges and about the size of a closed fist.

The bandit cursed and tried to gather them up, but the rocks just kept rolling away.

Jack smirked and snapped his fingers, his favourite fire pistol digistructing into his hand. He gunned down the bandits crowded around the case. The flames leapt from target to target, until only the one in the centre was left standing.

The Bandit quivered in his boots as Jack approached. His arms still loaded up with the purple rocks. One fell from his arms, rolled, and hit Jack's boot. Jack shot the bandit a very unsettling smile and kneeled to pick it up.

"So, what exactly is-"

The second Jack's fingers met the rock, it exploded into purple energy. It shot up Jack's arm like a lightning bolt, seeking out something deep in his chest then ricocheting back out in a shockwave.

The purple energy hit the one bandit full on, and he disintegrated on contact. Each cell that made up his body collapsing into a black goo that sloshed to the ground. The rocks he had been holding splashing into the puddle.

"Holy fuck," Jack breathed, staring down at his hand

He felt like he had just run a marathon, done a line of cocaine, drunk a quadruple shot of espresso, lit himself on fire and jumped off a cliff.

Usually, power drained into him from the alternate dimension like water seeping trough a crack in a concrete dam, but now the barrier had been blasted open. For the first time in his life, Jack was experiencing the powers given to him at birth at their maximum potential.

Jack looked down at the guy he had just liquefied. He had done it, and he could hardly believe that the black smear used to be a person.

"Holy fucking fuck!"

He needed to do something awesome again, just to prove this was real.

He tried to enter phasewalk, but instead of having to push trough to the other side, he practically fell into the gap between realities.

The next thing Jack knew he was standing on top of a sloped peak in The Dust overlooking the Hodunk Speedway. He yelped and stumbled back, taking one step to far off the edge.

The world twisted into a swirl of purple and Jack landed on his ass in a pile of leaves. Above moonlight streamed through the forest canopy. Six-armed animals swung on vines in the trees above, their screeching echoing around the treetops.

Jack lay down among the fallen foliage and dirt. Taking long deep breaths to try to calm his nerves.

As far as he knew there weren't any forests on the side of Pandora, he had started on. So, either he had warped around an entire planet, or this was a completely new planet altogether.

Jack could feel the power starting to ebb. If he didn't act fast, he would get stranded.

This craziness was an extension of his siren abilities, so it only made sense he should be able to control it. Jack grit his teeth, calling on his phasewalk ability while also trying to keep a clear picture in his mind of where he wanted to go.

A flash of purple engulfed him, and Jack was warped back to frostburn, two feet above a large puddle of freshly melted ice.

Gravity ensued, and Jack landed on his back in the cold water, instantly soaking his entire back.

"Fuck."

He eased himself up and took a moment to make sure he was back in the part of Pandora he tenuously called home. The skyline was unmistakable, as were the red tents that housed the humble beginnings of the cult of the Firehawk.

Jack took a deep breath and entered phasewalk. Thankfully, it seemed to be working normally again.

He slipped back up the side of the mountain, past the gauntlet of death traps and back into his inner sanctum.

He had to tell someone about what had just happened. Despite the few mishaps, that had been basically the coolest thing ever.

Jack exited phasewalk and trotted up to his computer. Ignoring the error message on the rightmost screens, he typed out a message and sent it off to Nisha.

'Something happened. Come ASAP.'

Jack sat down with his back to the fire pit. He was still hyperventilating, and his heart was hammering so hard he was worried it might crack a rib.

Whatever those purple rocks had been, he needed more. Casting his mind back, Jack remembered seeing a single word printed on the side of the Hyperion treasure chest just under the compony logo.

'Eridium'

It had to have something to do with Lilith's mining interests. Nisha had mentioned that her scouts had uncovered the construction of several huge drills in the last few months.

How deliciously ironic would it be if this Eridium was the key to taking down Hyperion once and for all?

He wasn't sure what Lilith wanted it for since it clearly needed the power of a siren to be used to its full potential. Jack knew that he was the only siren left on Pandora ever since Commandant Steele got tentacled, reanimated, then shot to re-death.

Nisha would know best what to do when she arrived, and it'd be nice to see her again. Jack hadn't had a good enough excuse to get her to come over in a while.

Maybe he should try to lay a few moves on her, if this Eridium was half as good as he thought it was, then he might very well end up as the hero who saved Pandora, and everyone knows chicks dig heroes.

Jack blinked, suddenly, he didn’t feel so fantastic. Maybe using the stone had taken a lot more out of him than he had thought. He slumped to the floor beside the fire pit. Maybe he could just close his eyes for a moment while he was waiting on Nisha.

Jack rested his head on his arm, and a moment later he was out cold. 


End file.
